Quick break actuating mechanism for electric switches



Sept. 14, 1954 P. M. CHRISTENSEN QUICK BREAK ACTUATING MECHANISM FOR ELECTRIC SWITCHES Filed March 23 1951 TJEZJs.

El -/6 1NVENTOR. 43 ZMLM. U/IIF/STENSE/V Gui ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 14, 1954 QUICK BREAK AOTUATING MECHANISM FOR ELECTRIC SWITCHES Paul M. Christensen, West Orange, N. J 'assignor to Federal Electric Products Company, Newark, N. J a corporation of Delaware Application March 23, 1951, Serial No. 217,161

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to electric switches and more particularly to an operating mechanism therefor.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a simple switch actuating mechanism which is well adapted to provide a quick-break operation, so as to assure quick separation of the companion switch contacts pursuant to a switch opening operation of the switch actuating handle.

Another object of the invention is to provide a quick-break switch operating mechanism which is particularly well adapted for use in connection with an enclosed switch or with a plurality of switches enclosed in a casing and operable by a handle accessible externally of the casing.

The invention and the above mentioned and other obj ects thereof will be fully understood from the following description considered in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a sectional view of a casing having a plurality of switches mounted therein and operable by the mechanism embodying the present invention, said switches and the operating mechanism therefor being shown in elevation;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 22 of Fig. 1, illustrating the mechanism in the switch closed condition thereof;

Fig. 2a is a sectional view on the line 2a-2a of Fig. 1 in the switch closed condition of the mechanism;

Figs. 3 and 3a are sectional views similar to Figs, 2 and 2a, respectively, but showing the mechanism in the switch open condition; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary front view, the cover of the casing being closed.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, Fig. 1 shows a switch casing H), which may be of conventional sheet metal construction and provided with the usual cover l2. One or more switches It, ordinarily more than one as here shown, are disposed in said casing, and it will be understood that said switches may be of any suitable type. As here shown, each switch includes an insulation base 16, a pivot contact IS, a movable contact and a rupture contact 22. The pivot for the movable contact member 20 is indicated at 24. The switch I4 is preferably, but not necessarily, of the construction shown in my application Serial No. 75,637, filed Feb. 10, 1949, assigned to the assignee of the present application. An insulation hook member 26 is secured to the movable contact member 20 and is engaged by the operating bail rod 28. The opposite ends of operating rod 28 are provided with the arms 30 and 32 which are pivotally mounted on pivots 34 and 36, respectively. Pivot 36 is carried by a plate 38 which is secured to the adjacent side wall 40 of casing I0. Plate 38 is provided with struck-out parts 42 and 44 which constitute stops which are engaged by bail arm 30 in the open and closed positions, respectively, of bail rod 23. The pivot stud 36 for arm 32 is carried by the opposite side wall 46 of the casing.

The mechanism for actuating the switch oper-- ating bail 28 comprises a lever here shown as in the form of a handle 48 pivotally mounted at its inner end on a pivot stud 50 which is secured to casing wall 46. It will be noted that the inner end of handle 48 is disposed within the casing adjacent to the inner surface of wall it. Cover 12 is provided at its free outer edge portion with a recess 52 (Fig. 4) in which the inner end or hub portion 54 of the switch operating handle is positioned when said cover is closed. It will be noted that the opposite edges of the cover at said recess may constitute stops for the switch operating mechanism in the openand closed conditions, respectively, of the switch and in this respect may be considered as cooperating with the above mentioned stops 42 and 44.

A floating link 56 is pivotally connected at one end thereof to handle 48, by a suitable pivot pin 58, and the opposite end. of said link has a pin and slot or other suitable lost motion connection with bail arm 32. As here shown, said link has a slot 60 in which a. pin orstud. 82 fixed to bail arm 32 engages said link. Said stud 82 has a head or enlarged portion 84- Which prevents inadvertent disengagement of link 55 from arm 32. A tension spring 68 is connected at one end thereof to pin 58 and at its opposite end to bail 28.so as to resiliently hold handle 58 in the full on position and to prevent loose motion of link 56 and the handle 48 in the on and off positions of the switch. It will be observed that handle 48 is in the form of a bell crank lever, one arm of which is connected to said floating lever 55 and the other arm of which provides a hand grip for manual operation of the switch externally of the casing.

A spring member 10 having an intermediate coil portion [2 and arms l4 and 16 is connected to bail arm 32 and to casing wall 45. More particularly, spring arm 14 has an end portion EB which passes through an opening in arm 32, and spring arm I6 has a portion 82 which passes through an opening 84 in casing'wall 56. It. will be observed that spring member 10 constitutes in effect one link of a toggle, the other link of which is constituted by bail arm 32. In the closed condition of the switch the toggle is overse't and spring is stressed and tends to hold the bail arm 32 in switch closed position. When, however, handle 48 is moved in a counter-clockwise direction, viewing Figs. 2 and 3, that is in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 3 to a position in which the toggle efiect is broken, the stressed spring 10 operates on bail arm 32 to quickly move said bail arm in a counter-clockwise direction whereby the switch contact operating element or rod 28 is effective to disengage the movable contact member from the rupture contacts 22 of the several switches, respectively. It will be noted that the slot 60 in the link enables the spring 10 to open the switch, after a predetermined movement of handle 48 sufil-cient to break the toggle, without interference by said handle. The parts are preferably designed so that the toggle constituted by bail arm 32 and spring link 70 is broken in the relative position of the movable contact member 20 and the companion rupture contact 22 in which said movable contact is in engagement with the companion rupture contact 22 at the pointed end portion 22a of said rupture contact. Thus, the quick-break operating mechanism is in effect handle-free so that after the latter is turned a predetermined amount in switch opening direction, the switch is automatically opened and the handle is ineffective to prevent the completion of the switch opening motion of the mechanism.

It will be understood that various changes in the details of construction and in the form and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the underlying idea of principles of the invention within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In an electric switch, operating mechanism for said switch comprising a pair of laterally spaced pivoted mounting members, a switch operating member carried by said mounting members for arcuate movement in opposite directions about an axis extending between the pivots of said mounting members, a spring member connected to one of said mounting members and forming 'a toggle device therewith, an operating handle, and a link .provided on said handle and having a lost motion connection with said one mounting member, whereby said handle is operable to set and to break the toggle, to close and to 'open the switch, respectively, said spring member being efiective to complete the switch opening movement of said arm independently of said handle after operation of the latter to break the toggle.

2. In an electric switch, operating mechanism for said switch comprising a pair of laterally spaced pivoted mounting members, a switch operating member carried by said mounting members for arcuate movement in opposite directions about an axis extending between the pivots of said mounting members, a spring member connected to one of said mounting members and forming a toggle device therewith, an operating handle, and a link provided on said handle and having a lost motion connection with said one mounting member, whereby said handle is operable to set and to break the toggle, to close and to open the switch, respectively, said spring member being effective to complete the switch opening movement of said arm independently of said handle after operation of the latter to break the toggle, said one mounting member being pivotally mounted between the ends thereof, and said one mounting member being connected to said spring and mounting said operating member at opposite sides, respectively, of its pivot.

3. In an electric switch, operating mechanism for said switch comprising a pair of laterally spaced pivoted mounting members, a switch operating member carried by said mounting members for arcuate movement in opposite directions about an axis extending between the pivots of said mounting members, a spring member connected to one of said mounting members and forming a toggle device therewith, an operating handle, and a link provided on said handle and having a lost motion connection with said 'one mounting member, whereby said handle is operable to set and to break the toggle, to close and to open the switch, respectively, said spring member being effective to complete the switch opening movement of said arm independently of said handle after operation of the latter to break the toggle, said one mounting member being pivotally mounted between the ends thereof, and said one mounting member being connected to said spring and mounting said operating member at opposite sides, respectively, of its pivot, and said link being connected by said lost motion connection between said operating member and the pivot of said one mounting member.

4. In an electric switch, an enclosed casing provided with a pair of laterally spaced walls, a mounting member pivoted on each of said walls within said casing, a switch operating member carried by said mounting members for arcuate movement in opposite directions about an axis extending between the pivots of said mounting members, a spring member connected between one of said mounting members and the wall on which the latter is pivoted to form a toggle device with the latter, an operating handle pivotally mounted on said wall within said casing, and a link pivotally mounted on said handle and having a lost motion connection with said one mounting member, whereby said handle is operable to set and to break the toggle, to close and to open the switch, respectively, said spring member being eifective to complete the switch opening movement of said arm independently of said handle after operation of the latter to break the toggle.

5. In an electric switch, an enclosed casin provided with a pair of laterally spaced walls, a mounting member pivoted on each of said walls within said casing, a switch operating member carried by said mounting members for arcuate movement in opposite directions about an axis extending between the pivots of said mounting members, a spring member connected between one of said mounting members and the wall on which the latter is pivoted to form a toggle device with the latter, an operating handle pivotally mounted on said wall within said casing, and a link pivotally mounted on said handle and having a lost motion connection with said one mounting member, whereby said handle is operable to set and to break the toggle, to close and to open the switch, respectively, said spring member being effective to complete the switch opening movement of said arm independently of said handle after operation of the latter to break the toggle, and said spring member having an intermediate coiled portion and arms extending therefrom, one of said arms being anchored in said wall and the other of said arms being pivotally connected to said one mounting member.

6. In an electric switch, operating mechanism for said switch comprising a pair of laterally spaced pivoted mounting members, a switch operating member carriedby said mounting members for arcuate movement in opposite directions about an axis extending between the pivots of said mounting members, a spring member connected to one of said mounting members and forming a toggle device therewith, an operatin handle, and a link provided on said handle 1 and having a lost motion connection with said one mounting member, whereby said handle is operable to set and to break the toggle, to close and to open the switch, respectively, said spring member being effective to complet the switch opening movement of said arm independently of said handle after operation of the latter to break 6 the toggle, and a spring interconnected between said handle and said operating member to prevent loose motion of said handle and link in the 011 and on positions of said switch and to resiliently hold said handle in said on position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,402,157 Gardner Jan. 3, 1922 1,811,253 Ball June 23, 1931 1,838,020 Hammerly Dec, 22, 1931 1,983,026 Greenleaf Dec. 4, 1934 2,412,494 Cole Dec. 10, 1946 2,524,784 Franks Oct. 10, 1950 

